Determination of acyclovir in plasma by high performance liquid chromatography with UV detection. Method development and method validation

A HJPLC method for the determination of acyclovir in plasma is described. The method is simple and sensitive enough for bioequiva-lence studies, where a large number of plasma samples with low acyclovir concertration are involved. The procedure is based on the deproteinization of plasma with perchloric acid and separation of acyclovir on a Hypersil ODS Column at pH 5.6 with UV detection. The calibration standards are linear up to at least 4000 ng/mL and the limit of quantification is 10 ng/mL.     

Investigations on the structure of dimethyl sulfoxide and acetone in aqueous solution

Aqueous solutions of dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) and acetone have been investigated using neutron diffraction augmented with isotopic substitution and empirical potential structure refinement computer simulations. Each solute has been measured at two concentrations-1:20 and 1:2 solute:water mole ratios. At both concentrations for each solute, the tetrahedral hydrogen bonding network of water is largely unperturbed, though the total water molecule coordination number is reduced in the higher 1:2 concentrations. With higher concentrations of acetone, water tends to segregate into clusters, while in higher concentrations of DMSO the present study reconfirms that the structure of the liquid is dominated by DMSO-water interactions. This result may have implications for the highly nonideal behavior observed in the thermodynamic functions for 1:2 DMSO-water solutions.     

Interaction between model poly(ethylene terephthalate) thin films and weakly ionised oxygen plasma

Model films of poly(ethylene terephthalate) were treated by oxygen plasma in order to quantify the etching rate and estimate the contribution of charged and neutral particles to the reaction probability. Model films with a thickness of 50 nm were deposited on a quartz crystal of a microbalance (QCM) by spin‐coating technique. The samples were exposed to oxygen plasma with the positive ion density of 4 × 10¹⁵ m^?3 and neutral oxygen atom density of 6 × 10²¹ m^?3. The etching rate was determined from the QCM signal and was 4.7 nm s^?1. The etching was found rather inhomogeneous as the atomic force microscopic images showed an increase of the surface roughness as a result of plasma treatment. The model films were completely removed from the surface of the quartz crystals in about 12 s. Knowing the etching rate and the flux of oxygen atoms to the surface allowed for calculation of the reaction probability which was found to be rather low at the value of 1.6 × 10^?4. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Etching of polyethylene terephthalate thin films by neutral oxygen atoms in the late flowing afterglow of oxygen plasma

Films of polyethylene terephthalate were deposited on quartz crystals and exposed to oxygen atoms to study their etching characteristics and quantify the etching rate. Oxygen (O) atoms were created by passing molecular oxygen through plasma created in a microwave discharge. The discharge power was fixed at 250 W, while the pressure of oxygen was 50 Pa. Before exposure to oxygen atoms, a thin polymer film of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) was deposited uniformly over a crystal with a diameter of 12 mm. The crystal was mounted on a quartz crystal microbalance to accurately determine the thickness of the polymer film. The polymer film was exposed to O atoms in the flowing afterglow. The density of O atoms was measured with a cobalt catalytic probe mounted next to the sample and was determined to be 1.2 × 10²¹ m^–3. Samples were treated with O atoms for different periods of up to 120 min. The thickness of the film decreased linearly with treatment time. After 90 min of treatment, a 65‐nm‐thick polymer film was completely removed. Therefore, the etching rate was 0.5 nm/min, so the interaction probability between an O atom and an atom in the sample was extremely low, just 1.4 × 10^–6. Samples treated for different periods were investigated by atomic force microscopy and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy to examine the etching characteristics of O atoms in the flowing afterglow. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Analytical Uncertainty in Modern Quantitative TLC

JPC – Journal of Planar Chromatography – Modern TLC - Experiments and calculations show the importance of analytical management to reliable analytical results. A method with a...     

The effect of plasma treatment on structure and properties of poly(1-butene) surface

This paper is focused on the chemical and morphology changes in the surface of poly(1-butene) (PB-1) generated by plasma treatment. The radio frequency capacitively coupled plasma (air, argon, argon then allylamine, argon containing ammonia and argon with octafluorocyclobutane) was used. Modified surface of PB-1 was characterized by contact angle measurements, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and atomic force microscopy. The surface hydrophilization by air and argon with ammonia plasmas was evaluated as most sufficient. Oppositely, a high level of hydrophobicity of PB-1 surface was reached by combination of argon with octafluorocyclobutane plasma. Upon plasma modification, hydrophilicity/hydrophobicity of treated surfaces remained stable within three days under air atmosphere and then values of contact angle slowly recovered to those of unmodified PB-1. However, morphology and surface chemical composition of plasma-modified samples remained generally unchanged during observed time. Changes in surface hydrophilicity/hydrophobicity of plasma-treated PB-1 were attributed to variance of conformation of the surface molecules.     

Mechanisms Involved in the Modification of Textiles by Non-Equilibrium Plasma Treatment

Plasma methods are often employed for the desired wettability and soaking properties of polymeric textiles, but the exact mechanisms involved in plasma–textile interactions are yet to be discovered. This review presents the fundamentals of plasma penetration into textiles and illustrates mechanisms that lead to the appropriate surface finish of fibers inside the textile. The crucial relations are provided, and the different concepts of low-pressure and atmospheric-pressure discharges useful for the modification of textile’s properties are explained. The atmospheric-pressure plasma sustained in the form of numerous stochastical streamers will penetrate textiles of reasonable porosity, so the reactive species useful for the functionalization of fibers deep inside the textile will be created inside the textile. Low-pressure plasmas sustained at reasonable discharge power will not penetrate into the textile, so the depth of the modified textile is limited by the diffusion of reactive species. Since the charged particles neutralize on the textile surface, the neutral species will functionalize the fibers deep inside the textile when low-pressure plasma is chosen for the treatment of textiles.     

Recombination of hydrogen atoms on fine-grain graphite

The probability of recombination of hydrogen atoms on surfaces of fine-grain graphite EK98 was investigated as a function of surface roughness. The source of hydrogen atoms used in this experiment was weakly ionised plasma created with an inductively coupled radiofrequency generator at pressures from 30 Pa to 175 Pa in hydrogen. Hydrogen atom density was measured by means of fibre optic catalytic probes. The recombination coefficient of the graphite samples was determined by observing their impact on the spatial distribution of the atom density in a closed side-arm of the reactor. Smith's diffusion model was used to calculate the values of the recombination coefficient. The measured recombination coefficient was found to increase much faster than the measured effective surface. This discrepancy is explained by the fact that on a surface which is not perfectly flat, there is a finite probability for multiple collisions. Impinging atoms collide more than once with the surface before they are reflected into the surface, which results in a larger probability of recombination.     

Characterization of Gaseous Plasma Sustained in Mixtures of HMDSO and O2 in an Industrial-Scale Reactor

Optical emission spectroscopy and mass spectrometry was used to characterize gaseous plasma in an industrial reactor of volume 5 m³ during deposition of protective coatings. Plasma was created in mixtures of hexamethyldisiloxane (HMDSO) and oxygen at the powers between 1 and 8 kW. The plasma density was somehow below 10¹⁴ m^?3. The flows of both gases were varied up to 200 sccm while the effective pumping speed was adjusted by changing the roots pump rotation speed between 250 and 4000 rpm. At such conditions the HMDSO was only partially dissociated to fragments. The behaviour of optical emission lines and mass ion currents was well correlated indicating that even one single technique was sufficient to monitor the behaviour of plasma at various discharge conditions. The optical emission spectroscopy as a simple and economic method is therefore suitable for controlling key processing parameters in such a plasma reactor.